Just in case you’ve not been perusing the bag-throttling thread:
Pat D’Arcy has kindly let me post the article I mentioned on his website, so if you’re interested in a cheap, efficient, invisible non-return valve for your chanter, go to www.uilleannobsession.com/review.html
Mine has worked beautifully for ten years.
Thanks to Wally Charm for permission to reprint it.
Great idea, although I’m wary about hacking up my chanter top. I might buy a Pakistani chanter to practice on - about the only thing they’re good for.
It might be cheaper to purchase brass tubing from a pipemaker, specifically measure to you chanter’s tenon diameter… just a thought.
Joseph,
humor: the trait of appreciating (and being able to express) the humorous; “she didn’t appreciate my humor”; “you can’t survive in the army without a sense of humor”
…10-4 there. For some reason, humor is lost on moi today… more coffee and sugar bombs ought to remedy this. 
It is a cool project, and cudos to Patrick, Wally, and Patrick.
I too, am a bit hinky about doing anything that messes with chanter top knob. Besides, I believe mine is screwed onto an internal plug that is threaded to recieve the knob, so this method is moot.
Might have to go with one of those brass shut offs that Antaine came up with, although it looks heavy.
t
Perhaps one can be made out of rosewood or another suitable wood.
Hey guys,
Since this is relevant I’ll pass it past the peanut gallery. I’ve got a design for a stop valve that I worked out quite some time ago. It’s relatively simple. It only works for the side-feed chanter top layout. It involves a spring loaded button on the very top of the chanter. When depressed by the thumb it shuts off the air supply, release the button and air supply is returned.
I’ve only made a couple of prototypes, as such I haven’t priced it yet. But I was thinking about $85 might be reasonable. If I offered this, would many / any of you be interested in a setup like that?
Davey B
p.s. We still have room for guests for the GNIPC tionol. I will be offering one of my cased deluxe d/c wooden whistle sets as a fund raising raffle as I did last year. One of our newest pipers got a great whistle set for a whopping $5!
WHAT??? $85 to let in air that should be free to everyone already?? Ridicul…uh,never mind, I see that my chanter already has one.
Davey,
$85 is reasonable for a prototype CSV. I’d be interested in it if it were guaranteed.
The obvious question, though, is how successful has it been on the few you have installed? Any leaks, any changes to tone/tuning, ???
PJ
At the Chris Langan Weekend Patrick was prodded by a few of us as to what he was doing to the tope of his chanter cap - was it loose?? Alas, it was this brilliant little invention that worked REALLY well! Simple enough too. recently the tippy top of my faux ivory cap top chipped and I’ve been wanting to use a piece of antler to replace it. I don’t have a lathe or anything to work it with so it may end up a pipe dream (har har!). But I’d be willing to give Patrick’s plan a try.
Thanks again Patrick!
PJ, I think you misunderstand me. I’m not talking about selling the prototype itself, just this particular “design” of stop valve. I think it would fit in the “in between” market for those who don’t want to spend hundreds for a fancy top with stop key, and those that get just the bare naked minimum chanter.
Hey Paul, you’re post seemed almost like a non-sequitor…Did D’Arcy’s new set have a stop mechanism like I’m describing? Or what?
Paul..sorry about the quality of the photo, I WAS going to take the pic on my unmade bed with my breasts in the picture, but simply was SO busy I forgot… 
And before you say it, YES I know this is a bit clunky looking and not spit-spot-perfect;y polished etc…it IS a prototype…but It gives you the idea.
That’d be the one of the other Patrick’s in the universe, the galant Mr. Hutchinson. Sadly I wasn’t at this years Chris Langan weekend (yet again). My new chanter has a sensual, irreverential, subcontinental, superendemerexional, Tayloresqueional, conventional stop key.
PD.
I really like the ‘Bic click pen’ appeal it has… seriously, I like this kinda stuff.
Now all you need to do is figure out something for a top fed chanter cap. 
It’s a bit rough looking… could do with a bit of brasso… oh you already spotted that… em… okay 
PD.
Hey Davey,
I really like that topper stopper! I guess the only thing is that if you wanted to tune drones/regs whatever (have a smackeral of Guinness while tuning drones) you have to use a hand to keep that spring-loaded topper stopper down? Monsieur H’s idea is simpler and frees up that hand to scratch with.
Joe…do you mean one like this…
I can’t quite see what you’re trying to show me. How is it set up?
…it’s a twist style top, the mechanism is on the inside…you asked if a simple stop valve could be done with a swan neck outlet…voila, there it is. all the mechanism is on the inside, the pin sticking out is just there as a position indicator.
Okie Dokie. Is this a similar design to the setup Tim Britton uses?